A buzzer-beating three from Dontaye Draper gave Real Madrid a 76-73 success over a brave Brose Baskets side in the Euroleague Top 16, adding his name to a long list of players who have scroed buzzer beater threes against the German side.
It was a cruel blow for the German champions, who remain winless in this competition and are all but out following this loss. They led 64-59 in the early stages of the fourth period and so nearly held on for overtime until Draper struck.
“For me the last shot means nothing, really,” Draper said. “The important thing is that we won the game. It´s a good victory and the future in the Top 16 looks great for Real Madrid. We need these kinds of triumphs on our way to the final goal, which is to reach the Final Four.”
Madrid move to 8-1 in Group E and look to be quarter-final bound. Jaycee Carroll led the Spaniards with 11 points while Bamberg, without Bostjan Nachbar were led by Anton Gavel’s 15.
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On a night where four of the five games were in Group F, it was highlighted by Montepaschi Siena’s 87-69 hammering of Fenerbahce at the Palaestra.
The Italians forced seven turnovers in a little over four minutes in the second quarter to turn the tide of the contest and ensure victory as they improve to 7-2 in the group and leave their Turkish counterparts stranded further at the bottom on 2-7.
Aleksandar Rasic hit four triples off the bench on his way to 16 points for Siena while Bojan Bogdanovic led all scorers with 22 points in vain for Fenerbahce. On their returns to the Palaestra, Bo McCalebb and David Andersen hit 10 and eight points respectively for the Istanbul side.
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Barcelona have all but sealed their spot in the quarter-finals after they held off BC Khimki 71-69 at home.
19 points from Juan Carlos Navarro led Barcelona to the victory as they now have an 8-1 record in Group F. The Liga Endesa side has now won 22 consecutive Euroleague home games.
The Russians, paced by Paul Davis’ 18 points are now 5-4, but are still in with a good chance of qualifying for the last eight for the first time in their history.
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Maccabi Tel Aviv have won back-to-back fixtures in the Euroleague Top 16 for the first time following a 66-62 success at Caja Laboral.
A late three from David Logan ensured victory as Maccabi move to 4-5 and handing Caja Laboral its fifth straight loss as they fall to the same record.
Devin Smith led the victors with 20 points with Logan supporting with 16. The Spaniards were led from the front by Maciej Lampe’s double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds.
“We needed the win even more than them; they had the better record until now. The victory was very difficult. It was a very hard game for both teams, we were fortunate to get the win here tonight,” Maccabi coach David Blatt said afterwards.
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A 19-9 final quarter finish gave Olympiacos a 79-60 win over Besiktas in Istanbul.
The Euroleague champions improve to 6-3 while keeping the Turkish side winless and rock bottom of the group. Josh Powell led the Reds with 16 points with Gasper Vidmar and Patrick Christopher hitting 13 each for Besiktas.
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